éirígí said in their New Year statement that their focus for 2017 would be opposing 'the privatisation and commodification of housing'. The Republican Network for Unity said 'we as revolutionary republicans must this year strive to present an alternative to constitutionalism, we must gain the support of the majority of the people of this island to make our goals and ambitions a reality'.

Tyrone manager Mickey Harte said that the GAA could stop playing the Irish national anthem and flying the tricolour at matches 'when the time is right'.

5th

Police appealed for witnesses to come forward over the UDA murder of Brian McIlhagga which had occurred two years previously.

6th

In the Turf Lodge area of west Belfast, a man was shot in both legs. Speaking for the SDLP, Alex Attwood said 'there is a new tyranny emerging - drug pushing on one hand and violent attacks on the other. Many in west Belfast know the scale of the threat, the impact on our community and the risks for our young people in particular. People and police must together confront these criminal and violent forces.' The Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire said
'I am sickened by news of the punishment-style shooting in Belfast last night - a cowardly act of violence that has no place in our society'.

The family of murdered prison officer David Black said that they felt 'betrayed by the justice system'. Damien McLaughlin, who had been due to stand trial, had been released on bail and had gone missing.

10th

MPs were briefed on the situation after the departure of Martin McGuinness. First Minister Arlene Foster of the DUP, whose resignation had been forced by that of McGuinness, said that she was
willing to open talks with Sinn Féin to prevent a collapse of power sharing. British Prime Minister Theresa May discussed the crisis with Taoiseach Enda Kenny. An assembly election looked to be highly likely.

11th

Sinn Féin said they were 'not interested' in crisis talks. However, Enda Kenny suggested that Sinn Féin and DUP were willing to consider a meeting.

The SDLP announced that they would back British-Irish rule if devolution failed, but not direct rule from Britain. Colum Eastwood said 'we cannot allow a DUP-run government to be solely replaced by British direct rule ministers. Theresa May, the British secretary of state [James Brokenshire] and the DUP need to understand that there can be no return to what has gone before.'

12th

Funding was found for the Líofa Gaeltacht Bursary Scheme. McGuinness had said that a major cut to the scheme had been part of the reason for his resignation.

Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the British Labour Party, said that he would oppose direct rule.

Óglaigh na hÉireann shot and injured the parents of a youth who they had intended to target in a punishment attack. The shooting was widely condemned.

13th

It was reported that Northern Ireland's Finance Minister Máirtín Ó Muilleoir was challenging a 280-year-old ban on Irish being spoken in courts. Disagreements over the official use of Irish language had been part of the tensions between
Sinn Féin and the DUP.

14th

It was reported that threats had been made against a family member of the couple shot by Óglaigh na hÉireann.

Brians Well Road in west Belfast was shut during a security alert. Police said later that they had found a device that was designed to kill.

15th

The Police Federation of Northern Ireland expressed fears that post-Brexit border posts would be a propaganda gift and a target for republicans opposed to the peace process.

Northern Ireland Secretary of State James Brokenshire said that he was not considering any alternatives to devolved government. However, Sinn Féin confirmed that they would not be putting forward a candidate to replace Martin McGuinness.

Sinn Féin threatened to pull out of the Joint Ministerial Council over concerns about negotiations for the UK to leave the EU.

Facebook confirmed that it had removed a list of people accused of anti-social behaviour after a series of punishment shootings.

20th

The DUP's Ian Paisley thanked Martin McGuinness, saying his 'remarkable journey not only saved lives but made the lives of countless people better'.

21st

Gerry Adams said that Brexit would be a 'hostile action' that would destroy the peace deal. 'The British prime minister repeated her intention to bring an end to the jurisdiction of the European court. Along with her commitment to remove Britain from the European convention on human rights, this stand threatens to undermine the fundamental human rights elements of the Good Friday agreement.'

A man who had been arrested over Facebook posts that had made serious allegations about some people in west Belfast was released on bail. The list named people suspected of being part of a joyriding gang in the Turf Lodge area. The list had been linked to punishment shootings.

The Guardianreported on the 'uneasy peace' in Northern Ireland, focusing on Portadown.

Police called the shooting of one of their officers 'reckless madness'.

Michelle O'Neill was named as the new Sinn Féin leader. According to The Guardian, 'while her father served prison sentences for IRA offences during the Northern Ireland Troubles, Michelle O’Neill has no such baggage and represents a break with the republican movement’s violent past'.

The Police Federation said that a hard border between North and South would put their officers at risk.

24th

Two men were arrested and one released over the shooting of a police officer two days previously.

25th

The New IRA claimed the shooting of a police officer on the Crumlin Road.

Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire argued that the Troubles inquiry was focusing too much on the police and army. Numerous former soldiers were facing prosecutions over killings. Brokenshire said that 'I am clear the current system is not working and we are in danger of seeing the past rewritten. It is also clear the current focus is disproportionately on those who worked for the state [...] the vast majority of whom served in Northern Ireland with great courage, professionalism and distinction'.

James Brokenshire became the first secretary of state to attend a gaelic football match in Northern Ireland. He was lately criticised for 'snubbing' the Irish national anthem.

30th

It was reported that a gun used to injure a police officer the week before had been used in a previous attack on police.

British Prime Minister Theresa May warned Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales that they would have no veto on Brexit. The taoiseach, Enda Kenny, spelled out fears over a 'hard border' with the North. May said that she wantd a 'seamless, frictionless border'.

Irish foreign minister Charlie Flanagan said Dublin did not look favourably on any proposed amnesty for either 'state or non-state actors'.

An appeal by republican 'Slab' Murphy against his sentence for tax evasion was dismissed.

The secretary of state, James Brokenshire, ruled out the possibility of Northern Ireland having special status after Brexit.

Tributes were paid to Margaret McKinney, a founder of the Families for the Disappeared, who had died aged 85. Her son Brian had been killed by the IRA in 1978.

2nd

The BBC cited figures that challenged claims that investigations into Troubles killings were unduly focused on those committed by the army. The DUP had said that up to 90% of PSNI legacy investigations involved killings by the army, but PSNI figures showed it was about 30%.

3rd

Royal Marine Ciaran Maxwell pleaded guilty to stashing explosives in preparation for an attack. The Guardian reported that
'Maxwell, who grew up in the predominantly Protestant unionist town of Larne, used the cover of being a British marine to aid Irish republican dissidents opposed to peace and power-sharing in Northern Ireland'.

A bomb was found in the garden of a house in Kinnaird Street, North Belfast.

5th

Gerry Adams said he would visit the White House if invited for St.Patrick's Day. Earlier in the week, Sinn Féin's leader at Stormont, Michelle O'Neill, had said that an invitation to President Trump to visit Northern Ireland was no longer appropriate. However, Trump said that St Patrick's Day was about Ireland, not Mr Trump.

Bertie Ahern argued that the Northern Ireland peace process had been put at risk by Brexit. He said that British Prime Minister Theresa May 'seems to be switching her language. She's saying not that there'll be no border, but that the border won't be as difficult as to create problems. I worry far more about what's going to happen with that. It will take away the calming effects [of an open border]. Any attempt to try to start putting down border posts, or to man [it] in a physical sense as used to be the case, would be very hard to maintain, and would create a lot of bad feeling.'

13th

Irish foreign minister Charlie Flanagan warned that human rights protections under the Good Friday Agreement were 'inviolable' and could not be altered by Brexit.

It was reported that the former British Prime Minister Edward Heath
had been linked to the Hooded Men torture decision.

The Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire rejected calls to
step aside as chair of cross-party talks after the assembly election. Both Sinn Féin and the SDLP had claimed that his recent comments on the legacy of the Troubles meant he could not be an honest broker in any negotiations.

The BBC reported on the rise of contemporary art murals in Belfast. Meanwhile, the Guardianreported that punk bands were demanding recognition for uniting Catholics and Protestants during the Troubles.

Masked men entered a house in Coleraine and shot a man and his mother.

20th

The DUP launched their election manifesto, warning that a victory in the Assembly election could give Sinn Féin a 'hugely significant worldwide propaganda boost'.

21st

Pipe bombs and ammunition linked to the INLA were discovered on Conway Street, west Belfast.

Pat Finucane's family lost their appeal against the British government's decision not to hold a public inquiry into his murder.

22nd

British Prime Minister Theresa May attacked claims that she had 'made a business of dragging soldiers through the courts over incidents in Northern Ireland'.

The SDLP's Colum Eastwood said that power-sharing was at stake in the Assembly election.

A device was found outside the house of a police officer in Derry. The PSNI blamed 'violent dissident republicans'. The bomb later exploded while they were trying to defuse it.

23rd

The European Commmission president said that he agreed with the Irish government that Brexit shoud not bring back a 'hard' Northern Ireland border.

24th

The DUP admitted to spending £425,000 on their pro-Brexit campaign, including £282,000 on an advert that did not run in Northern Ireland.

26th

The Financial Services Union warned that jobs in the sector could be put at risk by continued political instability in Northern Ireland.

27th

The PSNI failed in their appeal against an order to disclose police documents related to two murder attempts on Catholic taxi driver John Flynn.

Former Secretary of State Peter Hain said that Brexit put the Northern Ireland peace process at risk. He was
'not convinced the government has begun to even grasp the political significance' of reintroducing border controls. Hain had introduced an amendment to the bill which authorised the government to trigger the process of leaving the EU, arguing for the maintenance of an open border.

28th

Sinn Féin defended having sent a leaflet to schoolchildren. It had been part of a campaign for better broadband.

Damien McLaughlin, who had gone missing after being released on bail, appeared in a Dublin court accused of the murder of prison officer David Black.

A Department of Education review accused Stormont on failing to lead the way in integrated education.

An election was held for the Northern Ireland Assembly. The DUP managed 28 seats and Sinn Féin 27, while the UUP's share of the vote declined. It was the first time that unionists no longer held the majority at Stormont.

3rd

A High Court judge ruled that the Stormont Executive had failed in its legal duty to adopt an Irish language strategy.

Gerry Adams said that the family of Martin McGuinness had asked for privacy among reports of the former Deputy First Minister's failing health.

A police officer spoke about being shot at a petrol station in Belfast. He said 'blood was pouring out. I thought that was me. I thought I was going to die on that forecourt'. An appeal went out on Crimewatch.

8th

Irish foreign minister Charlie Flanagan met NI Secretary James Brokenshire. He warned that talks to restore Stormont's institutions were operating under a 'tight time frame'.

9th

The Council of Europe reported that an Irish language act is a necessity prevented by 'sectarian politics'.

The NI Secretary James Brokenshire said that Northern Ireland could face another election if no agreement on restoring the devolved government was reached within three weeks.

10th

Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams said that the Northern Ireland Assembly election result had shown that Irish unity was achievable.

A doorman was attacked with a fire extinguisher at a bar in Carrickfergus. The atttack was linked to an ongoing paramilitary feud.

12th

Fintan O'Toole argued in the Guardian that a Northern Irish identity with no sectarian markers was arising after Brexit.

DUP leader Arlene Foster said she 'did not consider resigning' after the Assembly election.

13th

A high-profile loyalist, George Gilmore, was shot in the neck in Carrickfergus.

Michelle O'Neil, leader of Sinn Féin in the North, called for a referendum on Irish unity 'as soon as possible'.

14th

In a letter to army veterans, British Prime Minister Theresa May said that the system of addressing the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland was 'unbalanced'. In her view investigations should focus 'much more on the hundreds of unsolved murders committed by terrorists'. On the same day she argued that it was the wrong time for a broder poll, and the focus should be on talks to restore Stormont.

15th

Loyalist George Gilmore died after being shot. The PSNI said it was working hard to avoid reprisal attacks.

16th

Outgoing UUP leader Mike Nesbitt said his decision to give his second-preference vote to the SDLP did not hurt his party.

Relatives of men killed in the Kingsmills massacreaccused the Republic of Ireland authorities of failing them in the search for justice. They said that both the government and the Irish police had paid 'mere lip service' to the idea of handing over information about the murders.

17th

Two pipe bombs exploded at two separate houses in Bushmills, Co. Antrim, just before one in the morning.

The BBC reported the views of Irish unity among border-based Protestants. Opinions were mixed. Rev David Latimer said that 'I would have to say any talk of the border on the northern side injects my co-religionists with fear, so therefore I think we have to be careful. In contrast, you come over here to east Donegal and the border is never mentioned.'

After the Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, said he agreed that there would be no return to direct rule, British Prime Minister Theresa May
stressed that maintaining political stability in Northern Ireland was a UK responsibility.

Gerry Adams urged the Taoiseach Enda Kenny to stand up for Ireland over Brexit. He said Kenny needed 'to act accordingly and stand up for our national interests across the island, at European level, to secure special designated status for the north within the EU. That is the consensus of the majority of parties north and south. If the British government succeeds in its plans, it will drive part of Ireland out of the European Union. That is not acceptable.'

Ex-soldier Dennis Hutchings appeared in court in Armagh over the killing of a man with learning difficulties in 1974. He was accused of firing his gun three times at John-Pat Cunningham, who was unarmed, as he ran from an army patrol.

A bomb exploded in Tyrone in an attempt to kill police officers. The PSNI said that its officers had been lucky to escape with their lives. The bomb was later described as
'a roadside bomb with a command wire attached'.

22nd

Former chief constable Hugh Orde said that Martin McGuinness' denunciation of republicans opposed to the peace process as 'traitors' had been 'one of the most extraordinary experiences' of his career.

23rd

Gerry Adams opposed an extension to talks aimed at forming a new Northern Ireland Executive.

Two boys were injured when a petrol bomb was thrown into a house in Craigavon.

Former first minister Arlene Foster blamed Sinn Féin for the stalled Northern Ireland talks. The Northern Ireland secretary James Brokenshire said that there would not be a snap election. They was a short window of opportunity for the two main parties to reach a deal over power sharing.

Dorothy Johnson failed in her bid to overturn a decision not to order a fresh tribunal into the 1988 'Good Samaritan' bombing, in which her father died.

The Brexit Secretary David Davis clarified that a border poll in favour of a United Ireland would result in NI joining the EU.

Two men who had been detained over the bomb in Strabane the previous week were

29th

British Prime Minister Theresa May said she wanted a 'frictionless' Irish border. She also said that the Tories were not neutral on Northern Ireland remaining part of the UK. 'We have a preference that Northern Ireland should remain part of the United Kingdom and we will never be neutral in expressing our support for that and that's because I believe fundamentally in the strength of our union.'

31st

Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire said that he did not see a role for an independent mediator in the next round of Stormont talks.

A man was charged with attempted murder and possession of explosives related to a January incident in Irvinestown, Co. Fermanagh.

Ian Paisley Junior said he would raise the issue of his father's bugging in parliament. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair denied that Paisley's phone had been bugged.

Party leaders met at Stormont. They had already missed one deadline for forming a power-sharing executive. Secretary of State James Brokenshire created a new deadline of 18th April, when Westminster returned from the Easter recess.

5th

Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill said that talks aimed at establishing a new Northern Ireland Executive had made no progress.

7th

Houses were evacuated over a security alert in Azalea Gardens, Twinbrook, in west Belfast. Controlled explosions were carried out on a car which had been linked to a robbery in Dunmurray. Houses were also evacuated in east Belfast but nothing suspicious was found.

9th

The Archbishop of Armagh, Eamon Martin, told worshippers that there was still hope of finding the remains of the Disappeared.

10th

A coronor ruled that 15-year-old Manus Deery, who had been shot dead by the British army in 1972, had been innocent.

Ammunition and a handgun were seized by police in Cookstown, County Tyrone. Their condition suggested they had been buried for years.

Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill said they wanted an election if talks failed to form an exeutive by the 14th. The DUP responded by accusing Sinn Féin of not being serious about meeting the deadline.

The Guardianreported that Stakeknife, a key British agent inside the IRA, had been linked to 18 murders and was provided an alibi by a senior police officer to prevent his arrest. It emerged on the BBC that the deputy directory of the Public Prosecutions Service, Pamea Atchison, had been asked to stay away from a decision not to prosecute Freddie Scappaticci for perjury.

It was reported that Stormont talks would take a break for Easter and resume afterwards, extending the deadline.

12th

Secretary of State James Brokenshire warned that if no agreement was reached at Stormont by early May, there would either be an election or direct rule.

The Guardianwarned that Britain was not taking the Irish dimension in Brexit seriously enough.

Sinn Féin welcomed Arlene Foster of the DUP's decision to meet Irish speakers. She had said she was willing to 'listen to and engage with those from the Gaelic Irish background, those without the party political background'.

14th

A senior DUP negotiator suggested that James Brokenshire wanted the partial transfer of some devolved government departments back to London if
discussions 'ran out of road'.

UUP leader Robin Swann said that Arlene Foster of the DUP had made a unionist election pact more difficult by outlining the DUP's position in a newspaper article.

It was reported that the surge in people applying for Irish passports had continued, with Brexit considered a large factor.

16th

An attack on two Latvian men in Coalisland was described as a hate crime.

17th

Republicans opposed to the peace process held a rally in Derry, attended by about two thousand people. The UUP criticised the PSNI's failure to make any arrests.

Gregory Campbell of the DUP expressed anger over Martin McGuinness's gravestone, which described him as an IRA volunteer. Campbell said 'a volunteer in Irish republican parlance didn't work in a charity shop, they terrorised people'.

After British Prime Minister Theresa May declared a snap general election, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood accused her of throwing 'a grenade into the middle of the our peace process'.

20th

Ian Paisley of the DUP said that police officers who killed IRA member Colum Marks 26 years ago should be given a medal rather than investigated. Sinn Féin described his comments as 'disgusting'.

21st

A new deadline of 29th June was set for Northern Ireland politicians to restore a power-sharing executive.

Nick Clegg, former British deputy prime minister, described the UK's approach to a border between Northern Ireland and the Republic as 'illogical nonsense'. In his view the border of a country that was inside a customs union and a neighbour outisde of it would require checks in place.

22nd

The UUP declared that they would not be running candidates in three constituencies during the election: North Belfast, West Belfast and Foyle.

Shortly before midnight, a sizeablebomb was found next to the Holy Cross boys' primary school in north Belfast. It was claimed that it had been an attempt to murder police.

23rd

The British Observerasked whether Brexit would reopen old wounds with a new border.

24th

An inquest into the killing of Bernard Watt, shot by soldiers during a riot in February 1971, heard that he was 'about to throw a bomb'. However, next day they heard there was no evidence that he was holding an explosive device.

25th

A court heard that Stephen Paul Lynch, charged after a burning car was abandoned in Larne, had links to the UVF.

26th

DUP leader Arlene Foster was reported to have said 'thank you' in Irish during a school visit.

A Westminster committee said that soldiers and police officers should not be prosecuted in relation to historical killings and torture.

27th

After the DUP met a number of Irish language groups at Stormont, the TUV leader, Jim Allister, accused them of 'genuflecting to the Irish Language brigade'.

A coroner ruled that lethal force had not been justified in the case of Bernard Watts.

Stormont talks weresuspended until the Westminster election had taken place. The election was scheduled for June 8th.

28th

A court heard that former Sinn Féin councillor Jonathan Dowdall had been filmed torturing a man who had come to his house to buy a motorcycle. The victim was a convicted fraudster.

With European leaders due to discuss how Northern Ireland could rejoin the EU after a future border poll, Gerry Adams said he welcomed the potential for a united Ireland, but Ian Paisley called the discussion 'hypothetical fantasy'. RTÉ News reported that a draft declaration of the EU would state that the 'entire territory' of a united Ireland would be part of the EU if a referendum in favour of unity was held. The BBC reported that the 27 EU leaders had unanimously agreed that they wanted to avoid a hard border as part of their Brexit negotiating guidelines.

29th

Taoiseach Enda Kenny called the outcome of the extraordinary European summit a 'huge endorsement of the Government's approach to the Brexit negotiations and a clear recognition of the unique and specific challenges facing Ireland'.

30th

Sinn Fein's Stormont leader, Michelle O'Neill, attended a commemoration for 8 IRA men killed at Loughgall by the SAS.

Brendan Duddy, 'Northern Ireland's secret peacemaker', died aged 80. He had acted as a secret back-channel between the British government and the IRA leadership for more than 20 years.

13th

British Prime Minister Theresa May visited Northern Ireland and called on its politicians to 'come together' to form an agreement over a return to power-sharing. She said there was 'goodwill on all sides'.

14th

A woman was injured when a petrol bomb was thrown into her house in east Belfast.

Prince Charles visited the place in the Republic where his great-uncle Lord Mountbatten had been killed by the IRA in 1979. He said that the murder had given him a profound understanding of how people affected by the conflict suffered.

A teenager from Northern Ireland was charged in relation to online material he posted apparently condoning the Manchester Arena bombing. Meanwhile, it was announced that more police would be deployed in Northern Ireland as else in response to the Manchester attack. In the Republic, security agenciesmet to discuss the situation.

A child was injured when dangerous material was dumped on a bonfire in Belfast. It was later reported that bonfires would be inspected.

The Alliance Party's Naomi Lang criticised political parties in Northern Ireland for their 'distasteful political point scoring' over the Manchester Arena attack. However, she said that she understood Sinn Féin's difficult position, in that it would be criticised whether or not it condemned the bombing.

The detective who led the investigation into the Kingsmills murders apologised to the victims' families for not getting the satisfaction they hoped for.

The SDLP's Colum Eastwood said that the referendum on an United Ireland was 'no longer solely the project of Irish nationalism'. His reasoning was that a 'unity referendum now has a much broader reach, offering us a return to the European Union as a sovereign country'.

31st

Jim Wells of the DUP was criticised for saying SF was not welcome in Rathfriland, a 'unionist' town.

Arlene Foster of the DUP said that maintaining the union with the UK was by far the most important issue in the general election, and that a border poll should be put off for generations. She also called for all paramilitaries, including the UDA, to disband.

An inquest heard that a man was regularly travelled on the minibus
at the centre of the Kingsmill Massacre was later named as one of those involved in the attack.

Concerns were raised over the future of cross-border healthcare after Brexit.

4th

In Dublin, a man was charged with possessing TNT and another man was charged with IRA membership. The explosives had been destined for use in Northern Ireland.

5th

The leaders of the Stormont parties argued on TV over the condemnation of terrorism and how to respond to Brexit. Robin Swann of the UUP welcomed Sinn Féin's condemnation of the recentIslamist attacks in England, but said he wished they would condemn IRA bombings. Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill said that parallels should not be drawn between international extremism and what had happened in Ireland. She criticised the DUP over recent endorsement they had received from a group linked to the UDA. Alliance leader Naomi Long said that it was tasteless to relate the recent attacks to their arguments over the conflict in Northern Ireland.

An RUC veteran suggested that British police should be armed after the London attack. He said that 'it's a totally different ball game to what I grew up with in Northern Ireland, where the terrorist essentially attacked someone. It was very short, it was sharp and then they looked to get away. In England, in the last three series of attacks, that's not been the case - they actually hang about and try to kill as many people as possible.'

6th

The DUP refused to accept an endorsement by a group backed by the three main loyalist paramilitary organisations, the Loyalist Communities Council, which had called for unionist voters to turn out.

7th

The shadow Brexit Secretary, Sir Keir Starmer, said that past comments by party colleageus about the IRA were 'regrettable'. He said 'we have to call out terrorism for what it is'.

8th

A general election took place in the United Kingdom. The SDLP and UUP won no seats, while the DUP emerged with 10 seats and Sinn Féin with seven.

A man was injured in east Belfast when a petrol bomb was thrown into a house during the night.

The alliance between the Tories and the DUP caused shockwaves across Britain, where the DUP had not previously been well known. Ruth Davidson of the Scottish Conservatives asked for reassurances that LGBT rights would not be affected. The DUP's links to paramilitaries was also brought into question. Hundreds of people descended on parliament to protest the alliance with the DUP.

Michelle O'Neill of Sinn Fein said that the DUP had 'once again betrayed the interests of the people of the north by supporting a Tory party which has cut funding to our public services year on year to the tune of hundreds of millions of pounds. Experience shows us that unionists have minimal influence on any British government. They have achieved little propping up Tory governments in the past and put their own interests before those of the people.'

Meanwhile, the SDLP said they were up to the challenge of changing after their election defeat.

The Observersuggested that the DUP would 'extract a high price' for its cooperation. It also reported that the DUP would not negotiate on a Sunday because of its religious beliefs. In another article, it reported that the deal would force the Conservatives to change their priorities. Theresa May had called the election to strengthen her mandate for a Hard Brexit, but the pact with the DUP had weakened her position, with the DUP opposing a hard border in Northern Ireland. The price of the DUP deal was likely to be economic aid to Northern Ireland, and no vote on Irish unity.

An inquest heard that a pregnant teenage girl shot during an exchange between paramilitaries and an army patrol in June 1972 had been totally innocent.

Former British Prime Minister John Major warned that the DUP-Tory pact could put the peace process in danger. However, Arlene Foster of the DUP called the deal a
'tremendous opportunity'.

13th

The Guardianargued that Sinn Féin's abstentionist policy was strengthening the Conservatives. It also criticised the DUP-Tory alliance on the grounds that it would affect the peace process and British relations with the Republic of Ireland, and it would create an unfair benefit to one part of the UK.

People continued to satirise the Conservative-DUP deal. The
Belfast Telegraphargued that the DUP had been the victim of a flood of fake news.

The government came under pressure from Labour and the SDLP to deliver a pledge to force Northern Irish political parties to declare their donors.

Nigel Dodds of the DUP said that there was no deadline for a deal between his party and the Conservatives despite a date being set for the Queen's Speech.

Sinn Féin accused Theresa May of not honouring the Good Friday Agreement in her pact with the DUP.

The Guardianreported that the DUP's leader Arlene Foster had written to the Scottish government in 2015 asking ministers to bar same-sex couples from
Northern Ireland from converting their civil partnerships into full marriages.

Sinn Féin's Gerry Kelly said that threats against nearly 50 people by 'Communities Against Drugs' should be lifted.

Orangeman John Aughey was found guilty of injuring six people with his car during a nationalist protest.

16th

The DUP leader Arlene Foster said it was 'right and proper' that her MPs would support the Conservative government's first Queen's Speech.

The Guardianrecorded Northern Irish reactions to the Conservatives' deal with the DUP.

The former UUP chairman David Campbell resigned from the party,
accusing it of 'political mismanagement and amateurism'.

The Equality Commission said it was to investigate the Department for Communities' handling of an Irish language bursary scheme. It said that the department might not have complied with its approved equality scheme
in making funding decisions.

The PSNI revealed that about 16 officers had to move or have special security
measures installed at their homes every year because of threats.

The new Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, said he had been 'reassured' about a potential deal between the Conservative Party and the DUP.
A court heard that the murder of Colin Horner was related to tensions
within the UDA.

The Guardiancarried an article about the 'invisible victims' of the DUP's abortion policy.

20th

Christine Connor, described as a 'lone wolf republican', was jailed for 16 years.

The Guardianreported that 'an experienced legal team' was planning to challenge the proposed deal between the DUP and the Conservatives because it breached the Good Friday Agreement.

The inquest into the death of Marian Brown heard that soldiers 'thought they were being shot at'.

Sinn Féin warned that any deal between the DUP and the Conservatives would have big implications for the Northern Ireland talks.

21st

The DUP expressed anger over being referred to as 'dinosaurs'by Green Party MP Caroline Lucas.

One of Strabane's biggest employers, sports firm O'Neills, expressed concerns over the potential impact of Brexit on its business.

It was reported that Christine Connor, who had been convicted over a 'solo republican terrorist campaign', had used a fake name and photos of a Swedish
model online to solicit help from two men who both later took their own lives. She had persuaded one of them to purchase explosives, which she used on attacks on police.

The SDLP claimed that Sinn Féin and the DUP were preparing to make power-sharing deal.

22nd

The inquest into Marian Brown's death heard that the army patrol that shot her had 'come under attack'.

The Irish foreign minister Simon Coveney warned that time was running out in the Stormont talks.

It was reported that a 76-year-old soldier, Dennis Hutchings, would stand trial over the death of John Patrick Cunningham, who had learning difficulties, in 1974.

Shots were fired at the funeral of republican Barry McMullan in Belfast.

27th

The Stormont power-sharing talks entered what was meant to be their final phase. One contentious issue was the Irish Language Act. Sinn Féin wanted to put Irish on an equal par with English, while the DUP looked to incorporate Ulster Socts into the act.

The Defence Secretary Michael Fallon defended the deal with the DUP, denying the money was a 'bung'. He said the money would 'go to improving some investment, improving the infrastructure of the province, growing the private economy of the province, and ensuring its employment rate – which is behind Wales and Scotland – catches up'. Carl Emmerson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies argued that 'the size of the UK's public finances means you can give away £1bn a year and it's not much more than a rounding error'. Criticism of the government continued as the Conservatives had frequently taunted Labour about a 'magic money tree'. Gerry Adams wrote in the Guardian that the Tory/DUP deal must not be allowed to disrupt the Good Friday Agreement.

28th

Former Tory chairman Chris Patten said that the DUP-Tory deal could damage the peace process 'in the long term'. He said that although Sinn Féin would want 'part of the action' initially, the DUP was a 'toxic brand' and British newspapers were already digging into their links to paramilitary organisations. Meanwhile, the SNP joked that each DUP MP was now 'worth more than Ronaldo'.

Sinn Féin called for the British and Irish to intervene to break the deadlock in the Stormont talks. The Guardianreported that the talks were 'on course for failure'.

The Guardianreported on the 'culture war' at the heart of the Stormont talks.

Two men who had been arrested over the shooting of a police officer at a petrol station in January were released unconditionally.

In Derry, a woman narrowly escaped injury when she walked past a suspicious object being made safe in a controlled explosion. The object was later declared a hoax.

4th

Talks failed to restore the power-sharing executive, with Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill blaming the deadlock on the DUP's support for the Tory government.

The Electoral Commission called for the publication of donations to political parties in Northern Ireland to be backdated to 1st January 2014.

5th

SDLP MLA Nichola Mallon called for Stormont politicians' pay to be cut while the assembly was not sitting. She said that 'no one should be paid for a job they are not doing'. Meanwhile, the BBC reported that the Northern Ireland Secretary of State, James Brokenshire, would be making some financial decisions after the executive collapsed before agreeing a budget. The United States called for a re-establishment of power-sharing.

A bonfire at a public carpark off the Upper Newtownards Road in Belfast, which had been at the centre of a dispute between its creators and Belfast City Council, was set alight.

6th

Kevin Nolan from west Belfast was jailed for storing Semtex, guns and bullets for republican paramilitaries.

British Brexit Secretary David Davis agreed to visit the Irish border region to hear the concerns of people living in the area.

The UK-based think tank 'Policy Exchange' suggested that Ireland want to leave the European Union after Brexit. Their report argued that the EU could not negotiate on behalf of Ireland as one of the remaining 27 EU member states, as Ireland was the most politically and economically exposed to Brexit.

Unionist parties the DUP and PUP accused Sinn Féin of a 'cultural war' over the Twelfth. They called on unionist to attend a 'cultural convention' in the autumn to promote future 12th July events.

A lawyer argued that Sinn Féin's demand for an Irish Language Act in the Northern Ireland power-sharing negotiations might violate the Good Friday Agreement equality clause.

Derry man Anthony Moran, who had been shot in the knees by paramilitaries a week earlier, said he believed his friend had been the intended target.

11th

Paddy Hill, who had been wrongly convicted over the Birmingham bombings, called the Michael Hayes' apology 'an insult'. A detective who had been at the scene of the Birmingham pub bombings, John Plimmer, said it was 'the duty of the British police' to interview Michael Hayes.

Bonfires were lit in many loyalist areas for the Eleventhnight. Firefighters later said it was a 'busy night' for them. Near Sandy Row, they stopped a bonfire spreading to an apartment block.

It was reported that the Secretary of State James Brokenshire would take financial decisions for Stormont during the week.

Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament's Brexit negotiator, suggested that people from Northern Ireland could elect MEPs in the Republic of Ireland after Brexit.

A petrol bomb was thrown at a baptist church in Stewartsdown, Co. Tyrone.

13th

The British Lords urged Theresa May to visit Northern Ireland to break the deadlock at Stormont.

A teenage boy was shot three times in the legs in a gun attack in west Belfast.

Father Gary Donegan, who had been involved in talks to help resolve a long-running parade dispute in Ardoyne, said Northern Ireland should build on the progress it had made after the 'most peaceful' Twelfth of July commemorations in years.

14th

After residents of a Belfast apartment block asked if the Northern Ireland Office would compensate them for damage caused by an Eleventh Night bonfire, they were told that it didn't operate a bonfire compensation policy.

An application for council money to fund a fanzone for Celtic supporters to watch their side's Champions League qualifier against Linfield was withdrawn. Belfast City Countil had approved the application but it was criticised by some politicians. The SDLP had called it 'a gross misuse of ratepayers' money.

Garda security boss Michael O'Sullivan warned that the New IRA were the biggest threat since the PIRA.

15th

Sinn Féin's Michele O'Neill said that the relatively peaceful marching season boded well to create the right atmosphere for political talks aimed at restoring power sharing in Northern Ireland.

Speaking at Brussels, the Irish for foreign affairs said that technical solutions alone would not solve the problem of the Irish border after Brexit. Brexit Secretary David Davis had mentioned trusted trader schemes, automatic plate recognition and pre-tagged containers as solutions. However, Coveney said he believed 'that is not going to work. Any barrier or border on the island of Ireland in my view risks undermining a very hard-won peace process'.

18th

The police requested a copy of the BBC's interview with IRA bomb-maker Michael Hayes.

SDLP MLA Daniel McCrossan said he would review security at his constituency offices after one of his staff was threatened by a member of the public.

Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin said that he was appealing convictions he received in 1975 relating to two attempts to escape from internment.

19th

Scotland and Wales formally called for funding in light of the UK's deal with the DUP.

The House of Lords EU Committee said that political stability in Northern Ireland should not be allowed to become 'collateral damage' of Brexit.

The taoiseach, Leo Varadkhar, said that Ireland would not 'design a border for the Brexiteers'. He said 'as far as this government is concerned there shouldn’t be an economic border. We don’t want one.'

A high court ruled that the PSNI was breaching the human rights of families of victims of the UVF Glenanne Gang in the 1970s.

A court heard that Ciaran Maxwell, accused of providing support for republican paramilitaries, had been trapped in an 'intolerable double life' and was 'frozen' with fear of the paramilitaries.

DUP, UUP and SDLP councillors walked out of a council meeting in Fermanagh after Stephen McCann of Sinn Féin refused to withdrawal earlier comments in which he refused to condemn the Enniskillen bombing of 1987.

31st

Former Royal Marine Ciarán Maxwell was jailed for 18 years after admitting living a double life as a bombmaker and quartermaster for republican paramilitaries.

Sectarian graffiti was daubed on murals and doors in Derry. DUP councillor David Ramsey said 'there is a sinister element involved and people are sick of it'.

After the DUP accused Taoiseach Leo Varadkar of politicking for domestic purposes after he said Ireland would not help Britain design an exonomic border after Brexit, Fine Gael senator Neale Richmond called them 'politically impotent' and told them to 'stop whinging'.

UUP leader Robin Swann Robin Swan called on Sinn Féin to stop using the Irish language as a red line to prevent the restoration of the executive.

It was reported that a controversial bonfire in Derry would go ahead despite efforts to offer an alternative. It was said that youths wanted to burn flags on the bonfire.

An article in the Guardiancalled the Orange Order's rejection of the term 'RIP' pointless.

A man arrested over the 1990 bomb attack that killed three police officers and a nun was released.

A man was abducted and beaten in Strabane.
SDLP MLA Daniel McCrossan said that 'Strabane has witnessed a spate of attacks on individuals and families in recent months. The message must be put out there, and it must be clear, that these attacks have no place in our society.' Police said that they were probing
paramilitary links to the abduction.

11th

Former police ombudsman Nuala O'Logan said that a prosecution
over the Omagh bombing could have happened if there had been a better police investigation.

A man was arrested over the 1990 attack that killed three police officers and a nun.

Disorder flared in the Bogside area of Derry after builders of an annual bonfire attacked police and members of the public.

15th

Sean Kelleher, who oversaw customs enforcement on the Irish border for eight years, warned that Irish Revenue and Customs was not adequately
resourced to deal with hard Brexit.

Community worker Paul Smyth said that paramilitaries were 'exploiting a political vacuum'. There had been 30% more paramilitary attacks between
January and June in 2017 than in the same period in 2016.

16th

The UK Brexit plan for the Irish border was called 'a recipe for chaos'. It involved
seeking waivers for goods and people crossing the Northern Ireland border. Writing in the Guardian,
Fintan O'Toole said the plan 'tells Irish people of all political persuasions exactly what they want to hear: that there will be no physical border of any kind across the island and that free movement will go on as if nothing had happened. But behind all of these delightful reassurances, there is sweet FA.'
Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire argued that the government's plans were realistic. There would be no return to a hard border.

19th

A gun from the Battle of the Boyne was displayed at the Museum of Orange Heritage.

People had to be evacuated from their houses in Lettershandoney during a night-time security alert. Republicans opposed to the peace process had claimed that there was a bomb in the village. The alert continued for two days until a device was found.

Arlene Foster said she did not think that Unionists would only accept legislation for the Irish language if
it also included protections for British culture and Ulster Scots identity. Sinn Féin moved to oppose her 'common-sense solution'.

St Paul's Primary school in Lisnarick was evacuated following a security alert.

Political talks resumed at Stormont. NI Secretary of State James Brokenshire said that if the Stormont Executive
could not be re-established, the government would be forced to legislate for an NI budget.

An inquest opened into the death of Belfast man Steven Colwell, who had been shot dead by police at a checkpoint in 2006.

Austin Stack, the son of a murdered prison officer condemned remarks made by Gerry Adams about an IRA murder in 1991. Adams had said that jailing the killers of Tom Oliver would be 'totally and absolutely counter-productive'.

5th

Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams denied that there was a culture of bullying in the party after councillor, Lisa Marie Sheehy, resigned. On the same day,
Adams called for a referendum on Irisih unity within the next five years.

Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney called for political leadership in Sinn Féin and the DUP to restore power-sharing at Stormont.

6th

Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said there could be no UK-only direct rule. The British government countered that it would never allow joint authority for Northern Ireland.

7th

Michael Barnier said that he was worried by the UK's post-Brexit proposals for the Northern Ireland border. He said the UK wanted EU laws to be suspended
at a 'new external border'.

8th

The DUP's Nigel Dodds said that his party would not let Labour 'gum up the works of parliament'.

9th

Gerry Adams said that he hoped power-sharing could be restored, but he was not naive abou the challenges.

13th

Jonathan McCormac was charged with shooting at a family's home in Larne during a loyalist feud.

The Guardianreported that new data had highlighted the scale of difficulties facing Brexit negotiators disentangling the border
between Britain and Ireland. The data showed that there had been 110m border crossings between the two in 2016.

The Prosecution Service said it was considering an appeal on the grounds that the sentences on
two men who planted a bomb at the Waterfoot Hotel in 2015 were too lenient.

23rd

Donald Milliken, former head of Northern Ireland's Police Federation, said
that RUC officers would have found a promotional film from 1976 'laughable'. The documentary purported to show everyday life in the force, but made no mention of the conflict.

A pig's head and racist graffiti was sprayed on walls of Inverary Community Centre in east Belfast. Police recorded it as a hate crime.

24th

Ulster Unionist MEP called on the Secretary of State to speak for
Northern Ireland on future Brexit discussions.

Gerry Adams insisted that Sinn Féin wanted a power-sharing deal with the DUP.

25th

The DUP welcomed comments by Gerry Adams indicating that republicans were committed to the restoration of devolution.

The DUP denied that there was a deal to restore power-sharing at Stormont.

The chair of the Community Relations Council, Peter Osborne, described the intimidation of Catholic families as a failure in politics.

17th

Former US President Bill Clinton metpolitical leaders. He warned that
some people who had backed the split with the EU were not fully aware of what they supported.

Four arrests were made in an operation to combat the west Belfast UDA.

18th

European Commissioner Paul Hogan said it was 'painfully clear' that the UK government wasn't going to provide a workable Brexit solution for Ireland. He criticised the 'tough guy approach' of UK 'Brexiteers'.

The Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, responded to Gerry Adams' comment that the Irish government had been engaged in 'untruthful, malicious and shameful'
press briefings. Varadkar said that Adams had given up on a deal to save Stormont.

A man was kidnapped and interrogated in Creggan by two men who threatened to shoot him. The alleged victim said he did not wish to pursue a complaint, but two men were arrested and charged.

27th

A family forced to move home in east Belfast because of a racist attack said they had received little help from the authorities.

A High Court judge quashed a decision by the PSNI not to take further steps to identify and prosecute those responsible for the torture of the Hooded Men.

The former Director of the WTO, Pascal Lamy, said that Northern Ireland could become an 'autonomous customs territory' and choose to mirror EU trade and customs policy, avoiding the need for checks at the Irish border.

The police found an explosive device at Poleglass that they said had been left by republicans.

Dr Christian Bock, head of the Swiss customs service, said he believed an 'invisible border' was possible in Ireland after Brexit.

Sinn Féin said that they were disappointed that talks to restore power-sharing at Stormont had failed. The DUP however blamed Sinn Féin for the failure.

2nd

The shadow Northern Ireland secretary criticised Theresa May for not getting involved in talks to restore power-sharing.

3rd

The DUP's Nigel Dodd said that he wanted direct-rule ministers running NI 'within weeks' if an agreement could not be reached on power-sharing.

SDLP MLA Justin McNulty said that Sinn Féin had to do more to encourage nationalists to join the police.

4th

The former GAA club of Peadar Heffron, who had been severely injured in an attack by republican paramilitaries, said it condemned the attack 'unequivocally and without any ambiguity'.
Heffron had spoken of the hurt he felt towards Kickhams Creggan GAA, which did not support him when he joined the PSNI.

British Prime Minister Theresa May urged the DUP and Sinn Féin to 'bridge the gaps' in outstanding issues in their talks.

British Brexit Secretary David Davis said that there had been 'frank discussions' about the Irish border in the latest Brexit talks. 'Let me be clear, we cannot have anything resulting in a new border being set up with in the UK. We remain firmly committed to avoiding any physical infrastructure. We respect the EU desires, but they cannot come at the constitutional integrity of the United Kingdom.'

The former Taoiseach Bernie Ahern commented that a hard Irish border would be a 'huge setback'.

Two men were arrested in Co Tipperary for conspiracy to import guns, bombs and ammunition into the country.

11th

Sinn Féin's Gerry Adams and Michelle O'Neill spoke with British Prime Minister Theresa May about the current situation in the North.

A deadline was set in the Anthony McIntyre Boston tapes case. Police and prosecutors were given two weeks to provide reasons why recorded interviews with McInyre should not be sent back to America.

Ivor Bell's legal team made an appeal to Belfast Crown Court to halt the trail into the killing of Jean McConville.

14th

Former Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hainwrote in the Guardian that it was painful to watch how 'local obduracy and Westminister's incompetence' had brought power-sharing to a halt for nearly a year.

15th

Arlene Foster of the DUP said that a Corbyn government would be a disaster for Northern Ireland because of his republican sympathies.

Former British chancellor Kenneth Clarke said
that the UK remaining in the single market and customs union was vital for peace and stability in Northern Ireland.

17th

The Taoiseach Leo Varadkar issued a warning that the progress of Brexit negotiations was at great risk of further delay.
After a meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May at the European social summit, he said 'I can't say in any honesty that it's close – on the Irish issue or on the financial settlement.' He argued that the UK had to give a written guarantee of no hard border between the Republic and the North before negotiations could move on.

Republicans opposed to the peace process were held responsible for death threats against a Protestant man who worked in the Ballymagowan area.

British newspaper the Sun told Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to 'shut his gob' and 'grow up' over Brexit and accept it was going to happen. The newspaper opinionated: 'he is too busy disrespecting 17.4 million voters of a country whose billions stopped Ireland going bust as recently as 2010. [...] We are Ireland’s biggest trading partner and nearest neighbour. The effects of a "hard Brexit" could be catastrophic. Yet Varadkar's rookie diplomacy, puerile insults and threats to veto trade negotiations are bringing it ever closer. We can only assume his arrogance stems from a delusion that he can single-handedly stop Brexit.'

Campaigners expressed concern about a resurgence of punishment attacks, including assaults using iron bars, sledgehammers and electric drills.

21st

Sinn Féin said that they were concerned by a proposed 'amnesty for British crown forces'.

Michelle O'Neill of Sinn Féin blamed the failure to restore power-sharing in Belfast on the Tory-DUP deal.

Downing Street said that it still believed that the Irish border problem could be resolved by December.

22nd

Richard Haass, a US diplomat who had chaired political talks in the North in 2013, said that Northern Irish politicians who backed Brexit had made a 'historic mistake' that contributed to the crisis at Stormont.

Provincial secretary of the Ulster Council of the GAA, Brian McAvoy, said that players should be able to join the PSNI without impacting their membership.

A former soldier who had been present when the British army shot dead 25-year-old Joseph Parker in 1971 said that he didn't know anyone had been killed at the time.

24th

Arlene Foster of the DUP said that she was concerned about a possible amnesty for police and soldiers for murders committed during the conflict.

Channel 4 apologise after posting a video on Facebook of a clip from US sitcom Black-ish that contained a joke about the Shankill bombing.

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood condemned an attack on a car belonging to a party member in Derry as 'an extremely cowardly act'.

26th

Liam Fox said that no final decision on the Northern Irish border could be made until a UK-EU trade deal had been reached. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell expressed concerns.

DUP leader Arlene Foster critised the 'megaphone diplomacy' of the Irish government in relation to Brexit.

27th

Police in Derry took away a number of items for examination after searching a property in the city.

Writing in the Guardian, Polly Toynbee suggested that the border question could force British Prime Minister's hand over Brexit.

The Guardian also reported that a confidential study had shown that 142 cross-border activities would be negatively impacted by a hard Brexit. They included heart surgery in Dublin for children from the North.

It was reported that the supreme court would sit in Northern Ireland for the first time in 2018 to hear evidence on the case involving Christians refusing to bake gay marriage-themed cake.

28th

Sinn Féin MP Chris Hazzard said that increased security at the border could lead to civil disobedience.

29th

Brexit negotiators said they were increasingly optimistic that sufficient agreement could be reached over the border in the coming days.

DUP MP Ian Paisley accused the Irish government of acting 'disgracefully' over the border. He urged the UK to 'shake their cage'.

The British government attempted to strike a deal with the EU and appeared to have reached an arranged on the Irish border involving
'regulatory alignment' between the North and the Republic. However, at the last minute the DUP spoke up and rejected the deal. The Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, said he was 'surprised and disappointed' and he needed 'firm guarantees that there will not be a hard border in Ireland'.

Belfast republican Damien 'Dee' Fennell was acquitted of charges arising from a speech at an Easter Rising event in Lurgan in 2015.

5th

Arlene Foster of the DUP said that the deal the UK had been set to agree with the EU had been a 'big shock' to her party. She had first seen the text of the deal on the day it was announced, despite asking to see it for five weeks. Jim Shannon of the DUP said that the party 'had no misunderstanding' about the text of the agreement, and the Conservatives had been aware of their opinion.

Leo Varadkar told the Dáil that the 'the ball is now in London's court' after Brexit talks had broken down.

6th

Four MPs, two Conservative and two Labour called for new legislation to prevent anyone accused of crimes linked to the recent conflict from being prosecuted. They argued that any statue of limitations that only covered security force members would 'fall foul' of international law. Johnny Mercer, a former Army captain, said he feared a cycle of litigation that would be simply 'lining the pockets of lawyers'.

DUP MP Nigel Dodds clashed with Independent MP Sylvia Hermon in the House of Commons over Brexit. Dodds accused her of 'being on the side of the Dublin government'. She denied being in contact with Dublin on the matter.

7th

Tánaiste Simon Coveney told the Dáil that Dublin's core position on Brexit remained intact.

Republican leader Seamus McGrane, who had plotted an explosion during the visit of Prince Charles to Ireland in 2015, was sentenced to 11 1/2 years in prison at the Special Criminal Court.

8th

After talks continued through the night, the British government struck a deal with the EU negotiators. There would be no hard border between the Republic and the North. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar greeted
the news as satisfactory. He said that the commitments on the border were 'bulletproof'.
RTÉ described it as being on balance a victory for Ireland.
There was a line in the agreement which 'refers to an all-island economy which reflects the Government's more maximalist interpretation of the Good Friday Agreement'.

9th

Gerry Adams said that Sinn Féin was not trying to exploit Brexit to gain a united Ireland.

10th

The British Brexit secretary, David Davis, claimed that the Brexit divorce agreement between Britain and the EU was a 'statement of intent' only.
The Irish government responded that 'we will as a government, a sovereign government in Ireland, be holding the United Kingdom to account, as will the European Union.'

Shots were fired in Garvagh. The two men arrested were believed to be involved in the UDA.

11th

A report in Dublin by Consultancy EY suggested that a gap in the economic fortunes of Northern and Ireland would increase in the next years as Brexit loomed.

13th

A court heard that loyalist Gary Haggarty who had been working as an informer, volunteered to kill Catholic Sean McParland in order to cover up his role. The intended target had been a relative of Sean.

The state papers also contained a claim that Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams had set up an IRA gang for ambush when they tried to blow up the RUC police station in Loughgall. Sinn Féin dismissed the claim as nonsense.

30th

Four children witnessed the paramilitary-style shooting of a man in a house in west Belfast.

31st

The State Papers revealed that there had been a discussion of a proposal for 'an all-island economy'. They also showed that contacts between Labour and Sinn Féin may have helped nurture moves by Gerry Adams to shift the group from violence. 'They reveal the Sinn Féin leader was banking on a general election victory in that year, or after, by a Labour party becoming re-energised under Neil Kinnock. The documents show Adams was intending to “sell” a plan to hardliners in the IRA that would see the new UK government declaring its intention to withdraw from Northern Ireland.'